Assistant Superintendent selected to participate in National Remembrance Day Ceremony in Ottawa

Assistant Superintendent selected to participate in National Remembrance Day Ceremony in Ottawa

Peace River School Division (PRSD) is pleased to share that Adam Murray, PRSD Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources, and Canadian Veteran has been selected to attend the National Remembrance Day Ceremony in Ottawa on November 11, 2018.

Adam was selected by the Canadian Ranger Patrol Group to participate in the National Remembrance Day Ceremony for his service in Afghanistan as an Army Primary Reservist. Adam is the only Canadian Ranger from Alberta invited to participate in the ceremony.

“I feel very honored to be invited to participate in the National Remembrance Day Ceremony” says Adam. “I grew up in Ottawa and each year I attended or watched the ceremony with my family. I always appreciated seeing the veterans who sacrificed so much, and it is very humbling to have the opportunity to participate in this way.”

Adam joined the military as an army reservist in 2005 and was deployed to Afghanistan in April of 2010. At the time of deployment Adam was employed as a teacher in Edmonton. He notes that there were many Canadian teachers deployed from the Canadian Primary Reserve Force, and more than a quarter of the forces deployed to Afghanistan were reservists that wanted to help their country.

When asked about Canada’s influence in Afghanistan, Adam says that it was about giving the Afghan people the opportunity to grow and flourish in a safe environment.

“I helped in an intelligence capacity to protect Canadian troops, to give commanders information on Taliban movements in the Canadian area of operations in the Panjway district” says Adam. “I was lucky enough to work with young soldiers who recently graduated from high school. I was very impressed with their professionalism and how much they cared for others. Being a teacher, this was very special to me.”

Adam also explains that earlier in the conflict Canadian forces built many schools for the Afghan children.

“Over the years, some of the schools were lost to the Taliban who used the schools as operations headquarters” says Adam. “Part of the Canadian forces role was to get the schools back from the Taliban and make areas safe for families and for children to go back to school.”

Adam was presented with the General Campaign Star for his service in Afghanistan by General Vance, who later became the Chief of the Defence Staff of the Canadian Armed Forces. Adam returned from Afghanistan in December of 2010 and returned to the education field in 2011.